TJ Perenara's fledgling test career looked like it might be over almost before it got off the ground after a rough ride in his second match in the All Blacks number nine shirt last November. But his Super Rugby form this season has got him noticed again by New Zealand coach Steve Hansen.

Scrum-half Andy Ellis will return to test rugby almost four years after he last played for the All Blacks, while four others are in line to make their debuts against Samoa in Apia on Wednesday.

Flanker Elliot Dixon scored one try and delivered the crucial last pass in another by Waisake Naholo as the Highlanders shocked the Hurricanes 21-14 in Saturday’s Super Rugby final and win the southern hemisphere title for the first time.

The Hurricanes-Highlanders Super Rugby final on Saturday "is going to be brutal" and could damage New Zealand's World Cup strength, according to All Blacks coach Steve Hansen.

Watch post-match reaction from players and coaches following the Hurricanes’ 29-9 home victory over the Brumbies and the Highlanders’ 35-17 away win over the NSW Waratahs in the Super Rugby semi-finals on Saturday.

Super Rugby will have a first-time champion this season after the Hurricanes and Highlanders won their semi-finals Saturday to set up the first all-New Zealand final in nearly a decade.

The Wellington Hurricanes will play the emotional card and invoke the memory of Jerry Collins when they play the ACT Brumbies this weekend as the Super 15 intensity hits "test-match level".

ACT Brumbies winger Henry Speight has been banned for five weeks for dangerous play and will miss Saturday's Super Rugby semi-final against the Wellington Hurricanes, governing body Sanzar said on Wednesday.

Former All Blacks captain Tana Umaga has been named coach of the Auckland-based Blues Super Rugby team, replacing John Kirwan who stepped down last week after three years in charge

Wallabies fly-half Quade Cooper is set to join the exodus of Australian players heading overseas after his Super Rugby side Queensland withdrew their offer of a contract extension.

All Blacks loose forward Liam Messam will put his Super Rugby career on hold in a bid to win a sevens gold for New Zealand at next year’s Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Wellington Hurricanes outside back Nehe Milner-Skudder and Canterbury Crusaders hooker Codie Taylor were two of the biggest surprises in Steve Hansen’s extended All Blacks squad named on Sunday.

The Otago Highlanders beat the Waikato Chiefs 24-14 and the ACT Brumbies accounted for the Stormers 39-19 to reach the semi-finals of this season's Super Rugby competition.

The Cape Town-based Stormers say they deserve their place in the Super Rugby play-offs and are capable of beating any team anywhere as they prepare to face the ACT Brumbies in the first knockout round.

John Kirwan has stood down as coach of the Auckland Blues after failing to bring the desired results to the Super Rugby team, the former All Blacks winger said on Friday.

Christian Lealiifano returns to the scene of his missed conversion nightmare this weekend as Australia's ACT Brumbies bid to stay alive in the Super Rugby play-offs against South Africa's Western Stormers.</p>

New South Wales Waratahs coach Michael Cheika has urged his players to remain firmly focused on their bid to become the first Australian team to win back-to-back Super Rugby titles over the two weeks until the semi-finals.

The Canterbury Crusaders bid farewell to All Blacks greats Richie McCaw and Dan Carter on Saturday with a fitting Super Rugby victory that ended the ACT Brumbies’ hopes of winning the Australian conference.

Defending champions New South Wales Waratahs and the ACT Brumbies are chasing maximum points this weekend to lock down a home semi-final and an easier path to this year's Super Rugby final.

Australia coach Michael Cheika said either incumbent Michael Hooper or senior hooker Stephen Moore will lead the Wallabies at this year’s World Cup.

The Waikato Chiefs and the New South Wales Waratahs both secured their places in the Super Rugby play-offs after demolishing their respective rivals on Saturday.

Beauden Barrett's return to Super Rugby on Friday should serve to ease a selection concern or two for All Blacks coach Steve Hansen. It will also no doubt trigger another round of one of the most popular debates in New Zealand - who should start at fly-half at the World Cup?

Seven-time champions the Crusaders beat the Hurricanes 35-18 in Super Rugby on Saturday, keeping their slim play-off hopes alive and forcing the top-ranked Hurricanes to sweat for another week on the prospect of a home play-off in New Zealand.

The New South Wales Waratahs’ hopes of defending their Super Rugby title suffered a blow with appeals against the suspensions of forwards Will Skelton and Tolu Latu dismissed.

Reigning World Rugby Player of the Year Brodie Retallick and free-scoring winger Julian Savea have committed to playing in New Zealand until after the 2019 World Cup, New Zealand Rugby announced on Wednesday.

Australia’s NSW Waratahs and South Africa’s Western Stormers jumped to the top of their national conferences as the Wellington Hurricanes qualified for the Super Rugby play-offs at the weekend.

New South Wales Waratahs coach Michael Cheika is preparing his players for nothing short of a battle when they meet the Canterbury Crusaders in a crunch Super Rugby clash at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium on Saturday.

New Zealand’s Wellington Hurricanes have opened up a 14-point lead at the top of the Super Rugby standings with a tense win over title rivals Waikato Chiefs at the weekend, while the ACT Brumbies ended a run of defeats.

The Western Force snapped a 10-match losing streak yesterday to upset defending Super Rugby champions New South Wales Waratahs 18-11 in Perth.